0191-9067/85 $3.00 + .00 Copyright ® 1985 SUN SAT Energy Council THE EFFECT OF MICROWAVE RADIATION (2.45 GHz CW) ON THE MOLT OF HOUSE FINCHES (CARPODACUS MEXICANUS) FRED E. WASSERMAN Department of Biology Boston University Boston, MA 02215, USA TREVOR LLOYD-EVANS Manomet Bird Observatory Manomet, MA 02345, USA SAM P. BATTISTA Arthur D. Little, Inc. 30 Memorial Drive Cambridge, MA 02142, USA DAVID BYMAN Penn State University Worthington Scranton Campus 120 Ridgeview Drive Dunmore, PA 18512, USA THOMAS H. KUNZ Department of Biology Boston University Boston, MA 02215, USA Abstract — Molt, the cyclical replacement of feathers, is essential to mating and the adaptation of birds to a variety of environmental changes. All house finches (Carpodacus mexicanus) molted successfully after continuous exposure to microwaves for up to 18 weeks at power densities of 1, 10 and 23 mW/cm2. An analysis of the time required for the last half (5(>%) of molt revealed that the mean difference between control (5 birds) and 10 mW/cm2 (9 birds) exposed animals was not statistically significant. The time for the last half of molt for the 25 mW/cm2 exposed animals (2 birds) was estimated to be 103 to 108 days as compared to 60 days for the controls. Gross and microscopic examination of house finches continuously exposed to 25 mW/cm2 for up to 18 weeks revealed no gross or histopathology. Each of six birds was observed for changes in muscle tone, righting reflex, vestibular function, pupillary (light) reflex, and corneal and lip pain reflexes. The necropsy was carried out with special emphasis placed on tissues that reportedly are most sensitive to microwaves (i.e., eye, bone marrow, blood, gonads, brain, thymus, and adrenals). INTRODUCTION The Satellite Power System (SPS) has great potential for providing electrical power; however, it has not been determined whether it would cause deleterious environmental effects. The receiving antenna (rectenna) is estimated to cover 100 km2 with the microwave field within the rectenna area ranging from 0.1 mW/cm2 to 23 mW/cm2
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